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Report: SAfrica losing battle against corruption

By MICHELLE FAUL Associated Press

Posted:
05/03/2013 03:07:18 AM MDT

Updated:
05/03/2013 11:56:19 AM MDT

JOHANNESBURG—South Africa is fighting a losing battle against corruption which sucked up nearly 1 billion rand ($111 million) in taxpayers' money last year, according to a new report that contradicts government statements that efforts to stamp out financial misconduct are going well.

"Corruption is rampant," the author of the report, financial forensics expert Peter Allwright, said Friday. "It's out of control ... and the dedicated units that have been created to fight financial misconduct are in essence fighting a losing battle."

South Africa is awash in scandals about misuse of government money and power—in one of the latest, taxpayers forked out around 250 million rand (nearly $28 million) on upgrades to President Jacob Zuma's private residence in his home village, including three new houses, a sewerage treatment plant and an underground bunker.

South Africans outraged by the lavish expenditure and disbelieving of their president's claims that he did not know how much it cost or any details of the upgrade have been asking how many homes that money could have built for some of the millions of citizens who live without running water or electricity.

The gulf between the fabulously wealthy and the impoverished is growing ever wider in the country with the continent's largest economy, fueling ever more violent service delivery protests as the African National Congress, which has governed since white minority rule ended in 1994, gears up for elections next year. The ANC is expected to win but its margins of victory get lower at every election where fewer and fewer people vote.

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People calling into radio talk shows have been wondering whether corruption is not one of the reasons that Britain announced this week it is ending development aid to South Africa in 2015. British aid this year amounts to $29.5 million—slightly more than the government has spent on Zuma's private residence.

In what is seen as an influence-peddling scandal, four security officials including two brigadiers-general were suspended Friday in a political firestorm over why an immigrant Indian family that is friendly with Zuma and a major contributor to his party was allowed to land a chartered jet without proper authorization at the country's main air force military base.

The South African National Defense Force has said it was not informed in what is considered a serious breach of security.

The incident "tells us who we are," The Star newspaper said in an editorial. "If you have money and friends in powerful places, you can do as you wish."

Allwright told The Associated Press that while 88 percent of people tried for financial misconduct are found guilty, only 19 percent are dismissed. Forty-three percent get final written warnings.

"Essentially you have a one-in-five chance of being dismissed and the rest remain in the public service and continue with financial misconduct because there are no real consequences," said Allwright, an attorney with law firm Edward Nathan Sonnenbergs.

Others are able "to get off scot-free" by resigning and getting another government job where they can continue to steal, he said. That was because an insufficient investigative capacity in the public service means nearly two-thirds of cases take more than 90 days to investigate. "You can give 30 days' notice and leave, and the public service office then often abandons the investigation," Allwright said.

"The majority of perpetrators remain in their positions and often continue to commit financial misconduct," his report says. Or, "The situation often results in corrupt officials moving to other institutions thereby avoiding sanctioning and finding a new hunting ground for unlawful behavior."

It says the public service has consistently failed to institute criminal charges against offenders, even though it is required by law.

Only 13 percent of the money lost to corruption is recovered, he said.

In contrast, Zuma said at a rally last weekend celebrating freedom in South Africa that "positive inroads are being made in the fight against corruption." He said 718 people are being investigated for corrupt activities and more than 1 billion rand ($110 million) of suspected stolen funds has been frozen.

Allwright's report says South Africa lost 930 million rand ($103 million) to financial misconduct by workers in national and provincial governments in the fiscal year 2011-2012, up from 346 million rand ($38.5 million) in 2009-2010. South Africa's national budget this year is 1.5 trillion rand ($167 billion).

The amount missing from public coffers is probably much higher because corruption cases are underreported and the figures do not include local governments, Allwright said. Despite government promises to fight corruption and mismanagement, little has changed since a government report on local governments in 2009 warned that in some cases "accountable government and the rule of law had collapsed or were collapsing" because of corruption, profiteering and mismanagement.

The government report found corruption was the biggest factor in failures to provide basic services.

Allwright said it was worrying that "the real extent of the problem is really unknown."

His report says the seriousness of the situation is best conveyed by an estimate provided to Parliament last year by opposition leader the Rev. Kenneth Meshoe of the African Christian Democratic Party. Meshoe said that a staggering 385 billion rand (nearly $43 billion) has been lost at every level of government since 1994.

Allwright's report is based on figures from parliamentary committee reports and the Public Service Commission, which has conceded that cases of corruption are probably underreported.

Your makeup may be making you sick

Coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath and fatigue — maybe there's a typical cause like a cold or an allergy flare-up. But perhaps the answer isn't right in front of you, it's on you.

The Centre for Science and Environment, a nonprofit public interest research and advocacy organizations based in New Delhi, India, released a study in January that examined the effects of makeup containing heavy metals, which includes most major brands, and found them to have adverse effects to the body and its well-being.

“Lead is the biggest culprit,” said Dr. John Salerno of The Salerno Center in New York. “However, we advise all our patients to shop for organic makeup, free of metals and chemicals.”

Salerno, an author, lecturer and radio host, has been working to uncover and counteract the harmful effects of metal toxins for more than 25 years. He devotes much of his time and energy educating the public and his patients, and is seeing a growing trend of makeup artists and wearers going green.

“People are starting to look at labels and paying attention to what goes onto their skin,” Salerno said. “We must get as label savvy with our makeup as we have become with our food.”

Salerno said his center does a lot of testing and finds that heavy metals in makeup can contribute to such conditions as acne, wrinkles, memory loss, mood swings, headaches and cardiovascular and neurological problems because skin absorbs what's applied to it, including heavy metals and toxins, which have the potential of entering the bloodstream.

“I see too many chemicals in makeup that just shouldn't be there,” Salerno said. “We find lipsticks are the main culprits with many containing lead and, people lick their lips and swallow.”

Freelance makeup artist Lindsey Rivera always has been dedicated to using cosmetics not tested on animals. She's also become an avid label reader and is transitioning to organic makeup.

“I'll also use alternatives like essential oils instead of moisturizers,” said Rivera, a Los Angeles resident. “I like to use natural products whenever I can.”

Currently, organic makeup can be difficult to find in brick-and-mortar stores so Rivera turns to the Internet, where she found Vapour Organic Beauty, which contains no toxic chemicals, parabens, phthalates, gluten, animal testing, nanoparticles or irradiation.

“I always try new brands on myself before any of my clients,” she said. “It can be overwhelming to switch your makeup all at once. Start with lipstick — that's an easy place to start — and start reading labels. It's like food. If there's an ingredient in there that you don't understand, it's probably not good for you.”

Gaudy Prentiss, named Best Makeup Artist in the Inland Empire in 2011 in a poll conducted by Inland Empire Magazine, shared that for everyday wear, mineral foundation is the best choice. Mineral foundation comes in dry powder forms, loose and pressed, liquid-to-powder formulas and light liquid mixtures. Mineral makeup is touted to have skin benefits ranging from minimizing redness and irritation, to giving extra sun protection.

“It's true that titanium dioxide in mineral makeup can act as an effective physical sunblock — in addition to whatever SPF is noted on the packaging. Incidentally, minerals have always been in cosmetic items,” said Gaudy Prentiss. “That is nothing new. What is new is the removal of a lot of the 'fillers' that have typically been included in foundations. That makes the mineral makeup on the market today more exciting.”

Gaudy Prentiss launched her own line of cosmetics, Tina G. Cosmetics, in 2007, and was one of the makeup artists on the first season of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.”

She had one more piece of advice on thick makeup, which usually contains fillers and additives. “Ditch anything with the name 'studio' in it and steer clear of makeup that claims to be 'full-coverage,'” ” she recommended. “In all my years as an artist, I have never met a real live person that should wear makeup that heavy.”

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